MINNEAPOLIS — Adrian Peterson opened the second half by coughing up the ball at the goal line. Ezekiel Ansah pounced on it. The Detroit Lions’ offense ran onto the field, celebrating wildly, and the momentum seemed to be theirs. No one saw the penalty flag. Jason Jones had lined up in the neutral zone. Minnesota scored one play later.
It was that kind of day for the Lions, who dropped an ugly 26-16 decision on Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings (1-1) at TCF Bank Stadium. They are now 0-2 for the first time since 2010, when they finished the season 6-10. They’ve only made the playoffs once in their history — in 1995 — after opening with back-to-back losses.
The Lions were done in once again by a sluggish third quarter. They opened the frame trailing just 17-10, thanks to a Calvin Johnson 11-yard touchdown to close the first half, but then went punt-fumble-punt-interception coming out of the locker room. Jones’ penalty also wiped out the Ansah fumble recovery, and Minnesota’s Zach Line made him pay, rushing for a 1-yard touchdown on the next play. That buried Detroit in a 23-10 deficit that would prove insurmountable. Tight end Eric Ebron caught a touchdown pass with 1:48 left and the Lions trailing by 16, but the 2-point conversion failed and that was the ballgame.
Detroit’s defense continues to be a major problem, too. One week after they allowed San Diego to rack up 33 points and 483, the Vikings — who had three points last week — racked up 26 points and 350 yards.
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